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6 Reasons Why New Hires Dread Onboarding Online Training

Landing a brand-new job should be an occasion to celebrate. But there’s one hurdle that seems to put a wrench in the works: new hires training. In this article, I’ll share 6 common reasons why fresh staffers dread onboarding online training and tips to overcome them.

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How To Overcome Onboarding Online Training Reluctance

Onboarding refers to the process of acclimating new employees to an organization. It provides them with the tools, resources, and knowledge to become successful and productive from day one. This training is not to be confused with orientation, which handles the basics such as roles, office layout, and equipment usage. Onboarding is an ongoing process. It helps assimilate new hires into the organizational culture. Ordinarily, most new hires would rather skip this training altogether and dive straight into first-day jitters. Let’s find out why and share 6 tips on how to get them excited about the onboarding online training process.

1. First Day Information Overload

Most organizations wait for the first day to begin online training. Effective onboarding begins long before. Distributing online training material to employees before the first day helps them to familiarize themselves with the organization and its policies. This approach ensures that the new hires feel that they are part of the company and prepares them for the onboarding training process. Imagine beginning a new job and training on the same day. You will be tasked with understanding the training, performing your role, and socializing. Which is enough to stress even the most excited new staffer. To get new employees off on the right foot, distribute bite-sized online training materials before the first day. Encourage them to explore the online training content at their own pace. In doing so, you will make their training smooth because there will be less novel online training content. Thus, the employee will be more focused and relaxed when it’s time to clock-in.

2. Using Outdated Online Training Content

Stop using the content you had developed for employees who joined your organization back in 2010. Online training has evolved over the years. Have you made your online training material mobile friendly and accessible to new employees? Are the examples you use so far still applicable for modern learners? Using outdated resources discourages new employees. Millennials especially, will fail to connect to your onboarding online training if your methods are not up to date.

Create new online training content for new hires that is manageable and relatable. This also includes your LMS and authoring tools. Modern tech platforms will simplify the process and lead to more effective online training courses. Moreover, this software will actually get you closer to your business goals by enabling you to track the entire onboarding online training progress.

3. Generic Onboarding Online Training

You have probably hired new people in various departments and you want to cut onboarding training costs. To achieve this, you use the "one-size-fits-all" approach. You create similar online training for new hires in all departments. As a result, corporate learners lose motivation and training goals go by the wayside. Where did you go wrong? Onboarding online training is designed to assimilate newbies into the organizational culture. As such, it shouldn’t be uniform. Employees need to be trained according to their duties and responsibilities. Some online training modules might be the same, such as company policy or product knowledge. But you must also personalize onboarding online training to address individual gaps and work expectations. For example, a new HR employee needs to know about hiring procedures and how to file a worker’s comp claim. But a customer service employee will be overwhelmed if their onboarding online training covers these topics, and those that pertain to their front-end responsibilities.

4. Unrealistic Expectations

It isn’t uncommon to find organizations setting very high hopes for newbies. It is natural to expect the best. However, expecting employees to complete and internalize onboarding online training within the first few days is a tad unrealistic. It is too much pressure for the employee, which can have a long-lasting effect on their productivity levels.

Set realistic goals for onboarding online training and clarify expectations with fresh staffers. One of the best ways to achieve this is to study past new hire training initiatives. On average, how many days did employees take to complete the onboarding training program? Which period led to the best success rates? Researching past programs aids in setting realistic and achievable expectations for the current wave of trainees.

5. Inaccurate First Impression

Most organizations fail to take the human element into consideration. For example, how new hires feel about their first day or the job requirements. However, this leads them to make the wrong first impression. Employees feel that they will not be treated well. Hence, they do not see the need to train and bridge gaps. The most effective way to start off on the right foot is to initiate frequent contact before the first day. This welcomes new hires to the organization and builds a rapport. You can also give them a sneak preview of their job duties and who they’ll work with.

6. Lack Of Experience

Many new hires feel anxious about onboarding online training because they simply lack the necessary skills or experience. The online training activities may require them to use pre-existing knowledge that they just don’t have now. Which is why it’s crucial to provide them with a performance support online resource library, custom tailored to the needs of your new hire. For example, microlearning online training tutorials or video demos that show them how to complete a sales transaction. Or infographics that walk them through every step of a certain procedure.

Use these 6 tips to get your new hires excited about the prospect of building new skills and expanding their knowledge. Thus, they’ll be able to get a head start and reduce the onboarding learning curve. Just remember, it’s all about personalization and setting realistic expectations from day one.